Headed by a Snake

Dwarven Bridge

The hundred-man collective walked through the wide stone hallways, their way lit by held torches and a pathetic few Elementary Rank illumination spells. A faint touch of magic present in the atmosphere colored the Dungeon stone a deep green.

The effect seemed intended... to match the snake motif. Squiggles left behind on faded murals looked like they could have been snakes. Minimalistic snakes were sporadically etched into the floor. Hypo-realistic snake statues lined the path, fat and unrealistically simplified exaggerations.

"[CUTE...]" Korr remarked.

Tycon quietly hoped that the Snake Cultists did not pay for such artistry. Korr's opinion aside, none of it was very good.

More troubling were the occasional bouts of script scrawled into the walls and tiles. They were written in crude draconic, a language that should have been rightfully lost. Translated, they provided little use... inane prayers to the snake god... filled with grammatical errors and misshapen runes.

...Probably written by a human.

Tycon did not particularly like the snake god. He met him once, the insufferable, arrogant prick. He tolerated the fellow for less than five minutes before punching him in the face.

Raphael of Cannes hurried from the front of the formation, waving to Tycon to catch his attention.

⟬ Raphael, Bronze-Rank Human Bravo. Guild Letalis. ⟭

The curly-haired, hatchet-wielding gentleman served as their guild's scout, boasting a practiced speed similar to one of their Iron-Ranks.

The gentleman saluted, "Sir Tycon, word from the front."

Tycon returned the salute, "Report."

"Armored statues and... magical formations, Sir. Holy Lancer Tanamar said you might have something to say about it."

"Very well, Mister Raphael. Lead the way."

...

Tycon was led to a wide bridge that crossed a dark pit, ten men wide. Even with Tycon's ability to see well through the darkness, he could not gauge the distance the depths fell. Lining the bridge, arranged in formation at the sides, were dozens of armored adventurers... petrified as white-stone statues.

"I said we should just break the Flame-scarred things," Weaponmaster Bannok groaned. "But Ari said it'd be best to send for you to make sense of 'em, first."

Even from the distance, Tycon could see the expressions the dead adventurers wore. Fear was frozen in their faces. If they were indeed guardians of the area, they were unwilling ones.

The adventurers, frozen in time, wore hints of Tyrion weapons and armor... they were former soldiers or frugal ladies and gentlemen who bought cheap, military-grade surplus. However, that meant they were likely not affiliated with the Snake Cult. On account of their state-supported persecution, the cultists tended to shun their national heraldry.

Tycon did have the ability to return ⌈Stone to Flesh⌋, but that would heavily tax his mana reserves for even a single person, never mind several dozen. As these people had nothing to do with him, he was unwilling to reveal such an ability.

"At first glance, the statues seem safe to break from a distance," Tycon offered.

Bannok nodded, "Right. Hero!!"

Tanamar waved in acknowledgment, loading his wooden bow with a conjured, lance-sized arrow, "Got it!"

Led by the Holy Lancer, the Brazen Guard forward team immediately set about breaking the statues.

Saving adventurers who had long ago died was not in Tycon's best interests. The Mosaic Guardians they had encountered earlier were made of solidified mana. Within reason, a similar spell could activate the lifeless white-stone statues as hostile defenders. Advising their complete destruction was better to keep his current allies safe.

"Master Tactician," Felinus called out.

Tycon excused himself from his conversation with Bannok to see what Hunter Felinus had discovered... a series of alien shapes marring a corner of the stone bridge. The elf had no idea what it was, only that it seemed out-of-place.

Just as dwarves had difficulty appreciating Elven craft, it seemed that Dwarven masonry baffled elves.

Upon a cursory inspection, Tycon explained that the formation seemed to be a trigger for the destruction of the bridge. The spellcraft was quite complex, its initial and obvious effect activating earth-type magic to forcibly adjust the hardness of the stones... It would be an irreversible defensive measure.

Also held within the formation were... personal notes left by the nameless Dwarven Formation Mage that had constructed it, lazily marked off in the code as inactive script. Within that were grumblings and complaints concerning his thoughts on the rest of the underground structure... including a rough diagram of the various floors.

It would take some time to parse, but it could serve useful. Tycon utilized his System to record it for later perusal.

"Tactician, your findings?" Felinus asked.

"Thoughts written by a dwarf..." Tycon stood up from the kneeling. "Are you interested?"

"I am not," Felinus admitted. With a nod, he turned back, drawing his bow to join with Tanamar and the others.

Tycon smirked as he followed suit. He didn't think the elf would be.

...

After a brief conversation, the Brazen Guard leadership decided that the various guilds would split up to explore in teams of 10 or so, meeting up in two bells after.

Crossing the bridge, there were a myriad of Dwarven stone structures, stairways to upper and lower floors, and winding pathways that would lead deeper into the Dungeon. Reasonably, the first buildings encountered would have been primarily commercial in nature. There should be a guard barracks for defense... and merchant shops for any visitors.

The weaker guilds would remain near the bridge for safety and the chance at enchanted equipment left behind.

Finding even a single piece of equipment would greatly increase the overall power levels of those guilds... The already well-equipped forces of Letalis Serpentia or the Brazen Guard forward team... not so much.

Unfortunately, finding any left-behind Dwarven goods was unlikely. The Halls of the Dead Serpent were well known for housing human Snake Cultists, after all.

For safety purposes, if a guild near the bridge were overrun by enemies, they could withdraw there, gaining the benefit of a funneling point. Failing that, they could retreat to the stairs and to the temple entrance where the Brazen Guard collective had set up camp.

Tycon would lead his friends and allies deeper into the Dungeon.

Guild Letalis had not joined the collective for mindless looting, but to gain experience. In particular, Athena would grow more familiar with her role as a guild leader and working with a team of competent adventurers.

As long as Tycon could keep all, if not most, of Letalis alive, they'd come out of this Dungeon stronger and wiser.